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Adjunct faculty union, AU sign new contract

AU's adjunct faculty union and the University reached an contract on adjunct employment, according to a memo sent by Provost Scott Bass on June 20.

The agreement coverage includes terms of employment, dismissal and pay.

Service Employees International Union Local 500 serves as the union for the adjuncts.

The agreement was signed by five representatives of SEIU Local 500, Bass and AU Chief Financial Officer Don Meyers.

"This agreement is an expression of our commitment to working with adjunct faculty to deepen this relationship," Bass wrote in the memo.

Adjuncts voted to unionize in February 2012. They have been negotiating since May 2012.

The contract was ratified by union membership, according to the memo. It will last from June 1 to Aug. 31, 2015, after which it will be renewed automatically on a year-by-year basis unless there is a written request for modification or termination from AU or the union, according to the agreement.

AU Media Relations, which handles all media requests for the provost, as well as representatives of SEIU could not be reached for comment in time of publication.

According to the agreement, at minimum, adjuncts without the highest degree in their field will be paid :

• $2,050 for teaching one or two credits per course

• $3,450 for three or four credits per course

• $3,700 for five or six credits per course

According to the agreement, with the highest degree, an adjunct will be paid:

• $2,500 for one or two credits per course

• $4,000 for three or four credits per course

• $4,200 for five or six credits per course.

Currently the lowest self-reported salaries for adjuncts at AU are $1,600 for a three-credit course in performing arts and $1,700 for a three-credit course in anthropology. In both cases, the adjunct who reported the lowest salaries had doctorate degrees.

According to the contract, adjuncts will be assigned courses through written notification from deans, associate deans or department chairs. The agreement also lists reasons for denying, cancelling or reducing assignments.

"We value the enormous and unique contributions that our adjunct faculty make to the AU community," Bass wrote in the memo.

hmongilio@theeagleonline.com


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